Cash back credit cards are some of the most popular types of rewards cards today. After all, who can say no to earning a little money back with every dollar you spend? Two of the most-discussed cash back credit cards are the Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card and Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards cards. Their programs, perks, and offerings are very similar, so if you’ve considered these cards in the past, it’s understandable if you’re at a loss when it comes to picking the one that’s right for you.

Here, we will dig into five specific features of each card and pick a winner for each category. The card that boasts the most winning categories is determined to be the better cash back credit card.

Best Cash Back Program: Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card

Earning money back on your spending is the main reason that you’re considering one of these cards.

Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card gives you an unlimited 2% cash back on every purchase. Every dollar you spend is equivalent to two rewards points, and these points never expire. There are also no restrictive categories and no limits on how many rewards points you may earn. Keep in mind that in order to receive the full 2% in points, you’ll need to deposit your cash back into an eligible Fidelity account such as a retirement account, a brokerage account, a Fidelity-managed 529 College Savings plan, or a Fidelity Cash Management Account. Also, the redemption value will be different if you choose to redeem your points for other rewards such as:

Statement credits

Gift cards

Merchandise

Travel options

With Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards, you can receive unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase. There are no changing categories, and there is no limit on how much you can earn. You are also entitled to redeem your cash back for any amount at any time, and the rewards don’t expire. If you value simplicity and you don’t want to worry about calculating or redeeming points, keeping track of rotating bonus rewards categories, or other confusing features, Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards straightforward rewards program is a solid competitor.

Annual Fee: Tied

Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card:No annual fee

Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards: $39 fee

Since it is counterintuitive to charge an annual fee when cardholders are attempting to earn cash back, few cash back credit cards charge these yearly fees. In other words, if you’re using your card to get cash back to pay for the annual fee, is there any point in carrying one of these cards? Instead, you could apply for a card with no annual fees and forget about trying to make purchases just to pay off the fee.

Best Interest Rate: Tied

When considering any credit card, it’s so important that you try to avoid paying interest at all times. Otherwise, all of the cash back you’ve earned and accumulated over the past few months will be used to pay off the interest instead of for the things you actually need.

Keep in mind that since the interest and other fees charged on outstanding balances with either card may be greater than the cash value of your rewards points, you might end up paying more in interest and fees than the value of the points you earn if you fail to pay your bill in full every month. However, if you do it right, it won’t matter what the interest rate is on the card, but it still doesn’t hurt to obtain the lowest APR you can.

The interest rates between the two cards are tough to compare because the APR for Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards can range based on your credit while the APR for Fidelity Rewards is fixed. Compare to the APR with Fidelity Rewards, you can get a slightly lower APR with Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards. However, there’s also the chance of a much higher APR if your credit isn’t great. For that reason, a tie is in order.

Although you should always consider the extra perks that come with a credit card, it’s important to look at whether you will actually use the perks before applying. Also, keep in mind that some credit card companies like to highlight certain perks that most credit cards currently have. For instance, both Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards and Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card offer zero fraud liability, and travel and shopping offers such as transportation and hotel discounts, beverage credits, and more. Furthermore, both of them offer the enhanced security of EMV chip technology.

Since both cards carry the same Visa Signature perks, they are tied for this category.

Best Protections: Tied

Although both Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® and Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards both have competitive cash back programs, it’s also important to consider the card protections that they offer should you find yourself in certain situations. Not only can these cards help protect you against fraud and identity theft, but they also provide peace of mind for your purchases. Rather than listing each point for both cards, here is a comprehensive table for your review:

Capital One Quicksilver cards

Card

Fidelity Rewards

Capital One® Quicksilver®

$0 liability fraud protection

Yes

Yes

Purchase protection

Yes

Yes

Price protection

No

No

Warranty protection

Doubles the original manufacturer’s warranty up to one year

Doubles the original manufacturer’s warranty up to one year

Again, both cards offer the same card protections, so it’s a draw.

Verdict: Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card

As you can see, Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards is very close competition for Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature®. Although the Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards, rewards program doesn’t restrict your cash back to certain accounts, most cardholders would prefer the higher 2% cash back on unlimited purchases that comes with the Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® card.

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